Ugajin
Encyclopedia
is harvest
and fertility kami
of Japanese Mythology
. Ugajinis represented both as a male and a female, and is often depicted with the body of a snake and the head of a bearded man, for the masculine variant, or the head of a woman, for the female variant. In Tendai
Buddhism Ugajin was syncretically fused with Buddhist goddess Benzaiten
, which became known as Uga Benzaiten or Uga Benten. In this limited sense, the kami is part of the Japanese Buddhist Pantheon.
Harvest
Harvest is the process of gathering mature crops from the fields. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulse for harvest, typically using a scythe, sickle, or reaper...
and fertility kami
Kami
is the Japanese word for the spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith. Although the word is sometimes translated as "god" or "deity", some Shinto scholars argue that such a translation can cause a misunderstanding of the term...
of Japanese Mythology
Japanese mythology
Japanese mythology is a system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculturally based folk religion. The Shinto pantheon comprises innumerable kami...
. Ugajinis represented both as a male and a female, and is often depicted with the body of a snake and the head of a bearded man, for the masculine variant, or the head of a woman, for the female variant. In Tendai
Tendai
is a Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism, a descendant of the Chinese Tiantai or Lotus Sutra school.Chappell frames the relevance of Tendai for a universal Buddhism:- History :...
Buddhism Ugajin was syncretically fused with Buddhist goddess Benzaiten
Benzaiten
Benzaiten is the Japanese name for the Hindu goddess Saraswati. Worship of Benzaiten arrived in Japan during the 6th through 8th centuries, mainly via the Chinese translations of the Sutra of Golden Light, which has a section devoted to her...
, which became known as Uga Benzaiten or Uga Benten. In this limited sense, the kami is part of the Japanese Buddhist Pantheon.